Comparison of the effect of honey and miconazole against Candida albicans in vitro

BACKGROUND: One of the most common causes of vaginitis is candidiasis. The aim of this study is to compare the effect of honey and miconazole against Candida albicans, in vitro. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The different W/V concentrations of honey were prepared at 20, 40, 60, 80, and 95% and different dilutions of miconazole were prepared in 0.05, 5, and 50 μg/ml. A microdilution of 100/000 cells per ml of a two-day old culture of Candida albicans was prepared in normal saline, after culturing the strain of PTCC 5027 in RPMI 1640 medium. Ten microliters of this dilution was added to 1 ml of the RPMI 1640 medium containing different concentrations of honey and to 1 ml of the RPMI 1640 medium containing different dilutions of miconazole. The cultures were incubated at 35°C for 12, 24, and 48 hours. RESULTS: The growth rate of Candida albicans was determined in the cultures. The results indicated that the honey prevented the growth of C. albicans greatly only at an 80% concentration, whereas, miconazole inhibited it completely. CONCLUSIONS: As Candida albicans is a normal vaginal flora, the inhibitory effect of honey without the fungicide effect is a very good trend in the treatment of vaginal candidiasis.